In an offseason Q&A with ESPN New York’s Mike Mazzeo, Nets head coach Lionel Hollins dishes on Jarrett Jack as the team’s starting point guard, the departure of Deron Williams and some of the team’s new signings. Of Jack being the potential starter, Hollins says:

Why can’t he? He’s done it last year, he’s done it in Portland, he’s done it in Golden State — wherever he’s been, he’s had moments where he’s had to start. And I think if a player is not starting [all the time], he gets a bad rap that he can’t be a starter. Well, that’s not the case. He’s been on teams with a lot of good starting point guards, and he’s done a great job of adding that depth that they have at point guard.

And on the departure of once-franchise player Williams and his move to Dallas, Hollins adds:

You’d have to ask [general manager] Billy King about that. The only thing I can say is this: Deron had not played as well as he would’ve liked to, and as well as we would’ve liked him to — the expectations that were on him, the burden of being in New York as a franchise player and all that. I wish him the best in Dallas, and I’m sure that he’s going to bounce back and going to be very good for them, and I have nothing but best wishes for that to happen for him.

]]>http://thebrooklyngame.com/hollins-jack-handling-starting-point-guard-duties-cant/feed/0The Nets didn’t have a good offseason, but they had a necessary onehttp://thebrooklyngame.com/nets-didnt-good-offseason-necessary-one/
http://thebrooklyngame.com/nets-didnt-good-offseason-necessary-one/#respondFri, 31 Jul 2015 16:39:55 +0000http://thebrooklyngame.com/?p=82460Despite Mikhail Prokhorov’s overtures, the Brooklyn Nets got worse this offseason. The gulf from Deron Williams to Jarrett Jack is massive unless Jack takes an unprecedented leap forward in impact at 31 years old, and Jack’s new role as Brook Lopez’s chef & waiter will test a guard who averaged a career-high 3.1 turnovers per […]

Despite Mikhail Prokhorov’s overtures, the Brooklyn Nets got worse this offseason. The gulf from Deron Williams to Jarrett Jack is massive unless Jack takes an unprecedented leap forward in impact at 31 years old, and Jack’s new role as Brook Lopez’s chef & waiter will test a guard who averaged a career-high 3.1 turnovers per 36 minutes last year. The majority of their free agent signings are talented but underperforming journeymen looking to find their NBA niche. The bench lacks shooting and rim protection, and the returning core is of a 38-win team in the Eastern Conference.

But the Nets have been uninspiring and listless in recent years, and much of that had to do with Williams’s uneasy, waning relationship with the franchise and his role at the top. There was a fracture between player and organization that went well beyond routine disagreements, and Williams played out the season like someone who was ready to move on. Even if Jack doesn’t improve, his contract doesn’t extend beyond this year1, and the Nets can hit the free agent market armed with max money looking for a replacement in 2016 free agency.

On the organization’s side, the team saw an opportunity to waive Williams and slip under the luxury tax, saving them close to $60 million this year alone in luxury tax payments and more likely around $40 million when all is said and done.2 The Nets did not want to pay that much money into salary and luxury tax for a declining player who wanted out, and every day Williams spent with the Nets would have only further strained that relationship until something snapped. Something needed to be done.

Prokhorov talked about a “shift in our approach,” and it’s true: it’s out with the old, in with the new. The average age of the players leaving the Nets this offseason was 28, while the average age of incoming players was 23.3 The number of thirty-year-olds on Brooklyn’s opening-day roster in four years has gone from five to seven to six to two. For every outgoing player, the team brought in a younger or equal-age replacement at the same position.

Even their drafting style changed. After the team spent the last two NBA drafts looking for seniors — not including Paul Pierce & Kevin Garnett — the team picked up Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Chris McCullough, and Juan Pablo Vaulet. That’s two 20-year olds and a 19-year-old, with only Hollis-Jefferson guaranteed to play next season.

Younger doesn’t mean better, just different. The Nets are banking on the idea that their low-risk, medium-reward gambits pay off in the long-term, moving from than their high-cost, high-reward moves of the past. They’ll be more athletic and make more highlight reels, but it’ll be difficult to watch in March if they’re well out of the playoff race and don’t have a high draft pick to slide towards.

Look, destroying and rebuilding is a long process. The Nets know that now. They tried to destroy & build a championship team overnight — well, over the course of two nights: July 3, 2012, when they re-signed Williams and traded for Joe Johnson; and June 27, 2013, when they agreed to a trade for Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce. It famously failed, and the Nets were hit with both a record-setting tax bill & the tattered, aging remains of a playoff team as punishment.

This is Brooklyn’s current mess. They need to take steps to move forward, but the future they mortgaged limits the value or potential of those moves. They’re have to toe the line between having players who can compete now (Brook Lopez, Thaddeus Young, Joe Johnson), young talent that needs to develop (Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Markel Brown, the injured Chris McCullough), and hoping that they can squeeze out at least one more Andray Blatche or Shaun Livingston-esque resurgence from a castoff (Thomas Robinson, Shane Larkin, Wayne Ellington, Andrea Bargnani), all without high draft picks.

That said, it could be interesting to watch.4 Rondae Hollis-Jefferson is an exciting defensive talent with a big personality. Markel Brown has a lot of room to grow. Bojan Bogdanovic is primed to take a leap. Chris McCullough was considered a lottery talent, and if he develops, would be a steal at the 29th pick. There’s value in watching youth grow, and if Jack or Larkin develops a strong chemistry with Brook Lopez, he should win them a few games on his scoring alone.

The pressure is gone. Rather than seeing a team plopped into Brooklyn expected to compete, there’s a chance to watch some core players develop. After years of decline, it’s the path they needed to take.

]]>http://thebrooklyngame.com/nets-didnt-good-offseason-necessary-one/feed/0Joe Johnson, Deron Williams didn’t get alonghttp://thebrooklyngame.com/joe-johnson-deron-williams-didnt-get-along/
http://thebrooklyngame.com/joe-johnson-deron-williams-didnt-get-along/#respondFri, 31 Jul 2015 14:54:17 +0000http://thebrooklyngame.com/?p=82461Deron Williams and Joe Johnson clearly weren’t close friends during their tenure in Brooklyn, and now there’s more fuel on that fire. NetsDaily reports that at least one team official expects Johnson to have “a tremendous season” now that Williams is gone: (V)arious sources inside the Nets have suggested that the departure of D-Will is […]

Deron Williams and Joe Johnson clearly weren’t close friends during their tenure in Brooklyn, and now there’s more fuel on that fire. NetsDaily reports that at least one team official expects Johnson to have “a tremendous season” now that Williams is gone:

(V)arious sources inside the Nets have suggested that the departure of D-Will is likely to help Johnson rebound. It was no secret that Brooklyn’s Backcourt didn’t get along. That famous Johnson tweet back in early November was believed to be about his relationship with Williams.

One insider, asked after the buyout if the Nets were still pursuing a Johnson trade, firmly said no. He volunteered there was probably no one more pumped about the buyout than Johnson. “I am sure Joe will have a tremendous season,” he added with a smile.

Though the two never publicly feuded, there were whispers that Johnson didn’t think Williams could handle the scrutiny that came with being a top player in Brooklyn. The fact that their lockers sat on opposite corners of the locker room didn’t help either.

“It’s just- as individuals, as players, (we have to) have each other’s backs out there,” Johnson vented to the media after the team’s Tuesday afternoon practice. “I just felt, I didn’t believe it. I go back, and I watch the tape, and I watch film just to try to get a different perspective, and I mean, my feelings haven’t changed.”

“It’s just kind of what it is. Defensively, we help from time to time, offensively, I just think guys kind of exhaust their options and then when there’s nothing else for them, then they’ll pass it when they have to. For the most part, we’ve been very selfish.”

…

“It wasn’t like that in preseason,” Johnson added. “Preseason, the ball moved freely, it just seems like it’s really not doing that right now.”

NetsDaily also reported that the team did not want to trade Johnson, instead preferring that they move Williams. It made little sense to trade Johnson over Williams: Johnson is a talented, agreeable player, his deal expires in this upcoming year, and any deal the Nets would make would likely be for contracts that extend beyond next season, further hampering their flexibility going forward. Just take what Mikhail Prokhorov said: “Joe Johnson stays as a core player.”

That’s not to say that Johnson was “never going anywhere,” as the article’s header states. But at least for the time being, he’s here to stay.

]]>http://thebrooklyngame.com/joe-johnson-deron-williams-didnt-get-along/feed/0Deron Williams selling his TriBeCa penthouse for $33.5 millionhttp://thebrooklyngame.com/deron-williams-selling-tribeca-penthouse-33-5-million/
http://thebrooklyngame.com/deron-williams-selling-tribeca-penthouse-33-5-million/#respondThu, 30 Jul 2015 13:36:23 +0000http://thebrooklyngame.com/?p=82440Looks like Deron Williams is trying to make up for his buyout on the real estate market. Williams originally bought his TriBeCa penthouse in 2013 for $15.8 million in January 2013, midway through the Nets’ first season in Brooklyn. But two years, two disappointing playoff exits, and a $27.5 million buyout later, Williams is Dallas-bound… […]

]]>Looks like Deron Williams is trying to make up for his buyout on the real estate market.

Williams originally bought his TriBeCa penthouse in 2013 for $15.8 million in January 2013, midway through the Nets’ first season in Brooklyn. But two years, two disappointing playoff exits, and a $27.5 million buyout later, Williams is Dallas-bound… and his penthouse is back on the market, with a pricy uptick, per the New York Post:

We hear Williams is putting the 6,800-square-foot apartment, which he bought for $15.8 million through Town Residential in 2013, on the market with Douglas Elliman’s Andrew Azoulay — for an eye-popping $33.5 million.

$33.5 million! More than double what he paid for it. That’s quite a jump, even for a penthouse that was reportedly looked at by Sean “Diddy, or whatever his name is this week” Combs.

If Williams fetches his asking price for the penthouse, he’ll net a profit of $17.7 million — more than the $15.6 million he agreed to give up in the buyout agreement with the Nets reached earlier this month.

This sprawling, light-filled penthouse is truly the ideal TriBeCa trophy apartment. Perched atop the Merchant’s House on TriBeCa’s premier block, the duplex six-bedroom home is comprised of over 6,800 square feet complemented by 3,000 square feet of private outdoor gardens (PHAC is a combination of two apartments, thereby resulting in 1,200 square feet of additional, bonus living space linking the northern and southern wings dedicated for the exclusive use of the penthouse apartment owner). As you enter the loft via direct keyed elevator access, custom designed John Houshmand benches accent the gallery-like entry hallway. The north wing of the home features the grand, contemporary great room with 17′ ceilings and 50′ of floor-to-ceiling windows and a continuous skylight overhead. Sitting areas are complemented by a gas fireplace, wet bar and integrated surround sound. From the great room’s sliding glass doors, the Japanese garden landscaped by Shin Abe completes the serene, airy space. An exquisite custom-made floating staircase leads to the two bedrooms in this wing, both open and bright with en suite baths. The restaurant-grade kitchen is stainless steel from top to bottom and features a commercial range and dishwasher, two industrial refrigerators, Hafele storage and more. Flanking the kitchen is both a spacious china closet and oversized climate controlled wine room.

]]>http://thebrooklyngame.com/deron-williams-selling-tribeca-penthouse-33-5-million/feed/0NBA Commissioner Adam Silver bailed Mikhail Prokhorov out of his marriage promisehttp://thebrooklyngame.com/nba-commissioner-adam-silver-bailed-mikhail-prokhorov-marriage-promise/
http://thebrooklyngame.com/nba-commissioner-adam-silver-bailed-mikhail-prokhorov-marriage-promise/#respondTue, 28 Jul 2015 16:07:25 +0000http://thebrooklyngame.com/?p=82438In a video message to Nets fans on the team’s official website, Brooklyn Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov talked about the team’s new approach to building, his happiness at the team bringing back Brook Lopez and Thaddeus Young, and his promise to get married within five years of owning the team if they did not win […]

In a video message to Nets fans on the team’s official website, Brooklyn Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov talked about the team’s new approach to building, his happiness at the team bringing back Brook Lopez and Thaddeus Young, and his promise to get married within five years of owning the team if they did not win a championship.

“Without a lot of noise, we got a lot done,” Prokhorov says in the video, citing Thaddeus Young and Brook Lopez returning, as well as their high expectations for Bojan Bogdanovic. Not mentioned: Deron Williams, who the team bought out this month, or any other departing player. Nor Lionel Hollins or Billy King.

He also acknowledged his promise to get married within five years, saying that the NBA offered him a compromise: “I am very happy to say that NBA commissioner Adam Silver has agreed to take the plunge in my place. Adam, you are a much better man than me. Thank you very much, and I wish you and your new bride every happiness.”

Here’s the full transcript from the clip:

Hi Nets fans. I wanted to take a minute to talk about where we are with the team and where we’re heading. First of all, we had a really good offseason. Better than a lot of people expected. Without a lot of noise, we got a lot done. Brook and Thaddeus are staying with us, which gives us continuity in our frontcourt. Joe Johnson stays as a core player. We also have high expectations for Bojan Bogdanovic, who showed a real flash of brilliance in his first year on the Nets. Some of you have noticed a shift in our approach. You’ll see a team that is younger and more athletic this season. Our approach has been more strategic, while making all necessary moves to be set up well for the future. But one thing remains constant, and make no mistake about it. We’re here to win, and we’ll do whatever we can, together with all of you who are rooting for us.

And one more note: you may remember my promise to get married if we didn’t win a championship within five years. Sadly to say, five years have passed. And today, I am very happy to say that NBA commissioner Adam Silver has agreed to take the plunge in my place. Adam, you are a much better man than me. Thank you very much, and I wish you and your new bride every happiness. And to the Nets fans, have a best rest of the summer, and I will be seeing you soon.

]]>http://thebrooklyngame.com/nba-commissioner-adam-silver-bailed-mikhail-prokhorov-marriage-promise/feed/0Nets to host Fenerbahçe Ülker basketball club in preseason gamehttp://thebrooklyngame.com/nets-host-fenerbahce-ulker-basketball-club-preseason-game/
http://thebrooklyngame.com/nets-host-fenerbahce-ulker-basketball-club-preseason-game/#respondTue, 28 Jul 2015 14:38:21 +0000http://thebrooklyngame.com/?p=82436The Brooklyn Nets have at least one game set next season: they’ll face off against Turkish basketball club Fenerbahçe Ülker on October 5th at Barclays Center as part of their preseason schedule. There’s one major connection between the franchises. Nets second-year guard Bojan Bogdanovic played with Fenerbahçe from 2011 to 2014, before the Nets bought […]

Bogdanovic guarding Paul Pierce as a member of Fenerbahçe Ülker in 2012. (AP)

The Brooklyn Nets have at least one game set next season: they’ll face off against Turkish basketball club Fenerbahçe Ülker on October 5th at Barclays Center as part of their preseason schedule.

There’s one major connection between the franchises. Nets second-year guard Bojan Bogdanovic played with Fenerbahçe from 2011 to 2014, before the Nets bought out his contract and brought him to Brooklyn. Bogdanovic was routinely Fenerbahçe’s leading scorer, and led the club to a Turkish Cup championship in 2013 and a Turkish League championship in 2014.

“We are excited to be hosting Fenerbahce, as it will be a reunion for Bojan Bogdanovic with his former team,” Nets general manager Billy King said in a prepared statement. “Our fans will have an opportunity to see one of the best coached teams in all of Europe when they come to Brooklyn.”

The Brooklyn Nets have a history of unorthodox preseason games. The team has hosted Maccabi Tel Aviv and Maccabi Haifa in recent seasons, and last year traveled to China as part of the NBA Global Games initiative to play the Sacramento Kings in Shanghai and Beijing.

Former NBA players on Fenerbahce include Pero Antic, Luigi Datome, Ekpe Udoh, and Jan Vesely, as well as Bogdan Bogdanovic1, whose rights are owned by the Phoenix Suns. Antic faced off against the Nets in the first round of the playoffs this past season with the Atlanta Hawks.

]]>http://thebrooklyngame.com/nets-host-fenerbahce-ulker-basketball-club-preseason-game/feed/0Shane Larkin responds to Phil Jackson’s comments: “couldn’t grow in an offense I wasn’t comfortable in”http://thebrooklyngame.com/shane-larkin-responds-phil-jacksons-comments-couldnt-grow-offense-wasnt-comfortable/
http://thebrooklyngame.com/shane-larkin-responds-phil-jacksons-comments-couldnt-grow-offense-wasnt-comfortable/#respondMon, 27 Jul 2015 20:54:04 +0000http://thebrooklyngame.com/?p=82434“Unfortunately, Shane hasn’t grown any since the start of the season.” Those are the words of Phil Jackson as told to Charley Rosen, regarding new Brooklyn Nets guard Shane Larkin after the beginning of last season. Though Jackson said he’d “stepped up” earlier in the year, he then referenced Larkin’s lack of development by the […]

Though Jackson said he’d “stepped up” earlier in the year, he then referenced Larkin’s lack of development by the trade deadline. Larkin also had missed the previous two games at the time of the interview.

Larkin was restricted by Jackson’s famed Triangle offense, which positions the point guard at the top of the key as a safety valve and little pick-and-roll from that position. Larkin, who played primarily pick-and-roll (he estimated 60 to 70 percent at the pre-draft Combine) at the University of Miami, felt he did not fit well in the offense, and responded to Jackson’s comments thusly:

@adobk89@MazzESPN couldn't grow in an offense I wasn't comfortable in. All good. No shade. Glad I'm across the river now. Wish them luck.

Simple, plain, clean: the offense didn’t suit Larkin, and he was ready to play in a freer system.

Luckily, Brooklyn fits that mold: Lionel Hollins implemented a steady diet of pick-and-roll with Brook Lopez as the roll man last season.

Larkin will have to feed the big man if they share the floor. He’s not known as a distributor, but if he develops a chemistry with Lopez, his assist totals could spike. That said, Lopez will likely spend most of his time with Jarrett Jack, and Larkin’s role could be to get the bench players, like Thomas Robinson and Andrea Bargnani, involved.

Jackson made the comments as part of “The Phil Files,” an ESPN feature wherein Rosen interviewed Jackson one day a month throughout last year’s regular season.

]]>http://thebrooklyngame.com/shane-larkin-responds-phil-jacksons-comments-couldnt-grow-offense-wasnt-comfortable/feed/0Can Rondae Hollis-Jefferson bring personality — and defense — back to Brooklyn?http://thebrooklyngame.com/can-rondae-hollis-jefferson-bring-personality-defense-back-brooklyn/
http://thebrooklyngame.com/can-rondae-hollis-jefferson-bring-personality-defense-back-brooklyn/#respondMon, 27 Jul 2015 13:49:38 +0000http://thebrooklyngame.com/?p=82426It’s been quite some time since the Nets have had an emotional leader with a big on-court impact. Gerald Wallace was supposed to be that guy, but the mileage on his body led to the precipitous decline in his production. Paul Pierce was that player, but his brief, late-career stint in Brooklyn limited his mark […]

It’s been quite some time since the Nets have had an emotional leader with a big on-court impact. Gerald Wallace was supposed to be that guy, but the mileage on his body led to the precipitous decline in his production. Paul Pierce was that player, but his brief, late-career stint in Brooklyn limited his mark on the organization and fans.

For Nets fans, the fun comparison following the 2015 NBA Draft was linking the past to the present. There was once an R.J. (Richard Jefferson), and now there’s an R.H.J. (Rondae Hollis-Jefferson). Both played collegiate ball at the University of Arizona, and both man the small forward position. Both are athletic forwards who did not come into the league with a reputation for outside shooting. Hollis-Jefferson will even wear Jefferson’s number (24), so what long-time Nets fan wouldn’t feel nostalgic?

Last names, initials, numbers, positions, and alma maters aside, you could make the case that R.H.J. should conjure up memories of another former Net from the glory years in New Jersey — Kenyon Martin.

Yes, K-Mart was a power forward and had a wholly different personality, but consider the attributes, skills, and intangibles he brought to the court, and you’ll see the similarities.

His jump shot wasn’t reliable or pretty (Remember this 2003 NBA Finals game?), but any shortcomings on the offensive end were made up with his freakish athleticism, which allowed him to cut to the basket with ease and finish strong around and above the rim. Martin was also great at running the floor in transition.

Martin earned fanfare for his ferocious dunks, but his real strength was his defensive prowess. He was the type of player who took pride in shutting down his opponent. His M.O. following a key defensive play was a cocky smirk or loud roar. Long-time Nets fans should remember how he gave All-Star Jermaine O’Neal fits during the 2002 playoff series against the Pacers.

Jason Kidd was the most important player on those teams, but Martin brought an attitude and toughness to the floor that helped shape the Nets’ identity. Believe it or not, the Nets were more of a defensive team that era: those signature fast breaks wouldn’t have happened if it weren’t from a forced turnover or defensive stop.

Martin was beloved not just because he was “homegrown” — drafted by the organization — but how he connected with fans. His emotions may have gotten the better of him (in the form of flagrant fouls) one too many times, but his intense energy, passion, and charisma electrified crowds and teammates alike:

The knock on Hollis-Jefferson is that his offensive game is raw, and his jump shot is in desperate need of improvement. If you focus on the strengths of his game, the Nets get a disruptive defender with tremendous athleticism, length, and a high-octane motor. For a team that has been lethargic and uninspiring in recent years, Hollis-Jefferson and his big personality should invigorate others on the court as well as in Barclays Center.

Some pundits have said that if all goes well, Hollis-Jefferson could be the next Andre Iguodala — also a former Arizona Wildcat. If that’s the case, then Brooklyn has found another important piece in building their roster.

If Hollis-Jefferson can develop into the player the organization and fans hope he can become, then the Nets may have finally filled the void that was created when Martin was shipped to Denver over a decade ago. Just don’t expect any haymakers.

]]>http://thebrooklyngame.com/can-rondae-hollis-jefferson-bring-personality-defense-back-brooklyn/feed/0Lionel Hollins, Billy King head to Africa for first NBA game on continenthttp://thebrooklyngame.com/lionel-hollins-billy-king-head-africa-first-nba-game-continent/
http://thebrooklyngame.com/lionel-hollins-billy-king-head-africa-first-nba-game-continent/#respondMon, 27 Jul 2015 13:22:07 +0000http://thebrooklyngame.com/?p=82427With the Nets offseason all but wrapped up, two core members of the organization will head to Africa this week for the first-ever NBA-sanctioned game on the continent. Nets coach Lionel Hollins will coach “Team World,” with Celtics coach Brad Stevens as his assistant, while Nets general manager Billy King will be a co-general manager […]

With the Nets offseason all but wrapped up, two core members of the organization will head to Africa this week for the first-ever NBA-sanctioned game on the continent.

Nets coach Lionel Hollins will coach “Team World,” with Celtics coach Brad Stevens as his assistant, while Nets general manager Billy King will be a co-general manager of “Team Africa” with Raptors GM Masai Ujiri. No word on if Ujiri will throw any more four-letter words the Nets’ way.

The game will take place in Johannesburg, South Africa, on August 1 at 3:00 P.M. local time (9:00 A.M. EST), and will be televised on ESPN.

The titles for Hollins and King are mostly decorative, with the larger point being the further globalization of the NBA game. The game will feature some of the NBA’s biggest stars, including Chris Paul, Marc Gasol, Bradley Beal, and Serge Ibaka. No Nets will be on hand. Some NBA officials have already begun the 16-hour trip from the United States, which will give them a few days to get situated. Whether or not Hollins or King have is not clear.

]]>http://thebrooklyngame.com/lionel-hollins-billy-king-head-africa-first-nba-game-continent/feed/0VIDEO: Someone made a highlight video of 25 Andrea Bargnani blockshttp://thebrooklyngame.com/video-someone-made-highlight-video-25-andrea-bargnani-blocks/
http://thebrooklyngame.com/video-someone-made-highlight-video-25-andrea-bargnani-blocks/#respondSun, 26 Jul 2015 16:03:24 +0000http://thebrooklyngame.com/?p=82424The Andrea Bargnani signing is a Brooklyn Nets fan Rorschach test. It’s either a no-risk, veteran’s minimum deal for a former top overall pick that once averaged 20 points per game (great!), or a terrible defender and poor shooter who might take playing time away from the team’s younger, higher-potential players and torpedo the team’s […]

The Andrea Bargnani signing is a Brooklyn Nets fan Rorschach test. It’s either a no-risk, veteran’s minimum deal for a former top overall pick that once averaged 20 points per game (great!), or a terrible defender and poor shooter who might take playing time away from the team’s younger, higher-potential players and torpedo the team’s interior defense in the process. You see the ink on the contract and you either see the eternal hope or eternal cynicism that defines you as both a sports fan and a human being.

I don’t know if the person who made the video above was hopeful about Bargnani’s potential, deeply cynical about his porous defense without the proper tools to show it, or just bored. But YouTube user Piotr Zarychta took the time to cut together 25 of Bargnani’s 27 NBA blocks1 with the New York Knicks last season.

This isn’t Blake Griffin dunks or Derrick Rose ankle-breakers, and that’s exactly why we needed it, says a writer for the website that once cut a two-and-a-half-minute Keith Bogans highlight video exclusively of him hitting threes and people. A quick perusal of Zarychta’s video upload history shows a few videos like this: there are the requisite Stephen Curry threes and game highlights, but also the occasional Timofey Mozgov reel. We need those, because if they are not captured, they will be forgotten, a fate worse than basketball purgatory.

Some of these blocks are kind of decent! Most of them come with Bargnani defending a post-up, which has generally been his best spot defensively. He’s got some good timing on his non-jumps, including a tap-away of a Greg Monroe drive, and he even sends a Brook Lopez shot on a stifled arc towards the rim. A few of them come with him out of position and luckily avoiding a foul call, and others are just bad shots.

Like Rorschach, you’ll see whatever you want to see in this video: enough to get by for a few minutes per game, or enough to laugh at and mock. But, damnit, they are there, and they are to be watched. This is what sports is all about.